Tucker Carlson: Our culture could use some modesty

A wonderful exchange between Fox News host Tucker Carlson and Jay Parini, a professor, author, and poet.  Given the circumstances, they make the salutary point that "we all proceed on insufficient knowledge" and conclude that what is lacking in current political discourse is "modesty" and that we need to "teach modesty" and "inculcate a spirit of modesty" as a corrective.

Meanwhile back at the blog run by Freeholder George Graham and his cohort...

https://www.facebook.com/whowhatwherewhen/videos/10208392022592286/

Yes, this is one of the folks from Mark D. Quick's four-man rally on February 25th and he is... yes, urinating on the campaign literature of Freeholder Graham's political opponents.  Nice. 

Last week they were burning literature.  This week, they are pissing on it.  This is the world that Graham has made.

We all should know the Graham story by now.  A local yokel Democrat political consultant gets pushed out of Hudson County by the bigger fish.  Does odd jobs for some of the politically-connected construction firms out that way.   Moves on the Sussex County market.  Says he's in the "paper business" and a few local businesses get taped and screwed.  Gets elected in Stanhope as a Democrat, switches to Republican, back to Democrat to vote for Barack or Hillary, then to Republican again. 

Takes over the Sussex County League of Municipalities (which almost immediately experiences "financial irregularities"), one of nature's "ham and eggers" so he needs to play underhanded, he lies and spreads over-the-top rumors in an attempt to push out incumbent Republican political consultant in order to get his business, when that fails, becomes a candidate and wins a Freeholder seat, promptly turns on those who helped him and destroys them (just ask Freeholder Dennis Mudrick). 

As a Freeholder, he is always on the lookout for a dime.  Gets others to pay his bills, fund his campaigns.  Suckers, he calls them.  He participates in every vote to make the solar project worse and then, turns on the board, points the finger, and blames them.  Wrecks any attempt to rationally work a way out of the solar mess by heavily politicizing the issue BUT he does elect his cronies and takes control over the Board.  Promptly hires NYC leftist and forces out long-time, local Republican.  Hires politically-connected NYC law firm to handle solar review -- which goes from a money recovery operation to a therapy session costing half a million dollars.  Gives a no-bid contract to the very lawyers he said were to blame for the solar mess. 

Moves on to state politics.  Sows seeds of discontent between District 24 legislators.  Targets Gail Phoebus, the unstable one, and gets her to spread outrageous rumors about BOTH her running mates and their families.  Horrible, low as dirt stuff they spread, but hey, this is George.  He is there to undo every attempt at reconciliation.  Meanwhile, he is using his political consulting business to cash in.  Claims to be working in other races around the state, claims to be working for a gubernatorial campaign... is he working for some of the firms that do business in Sussex County?  We would need a more detailed ethics filing to find out. 

This is who is running your county government.

This is why Sussex County needs an Ethics Committee.

Solar consultant getting $14,000 a month

The Sussex County solar scam has put taxpayers on the hook for $28 million and seen the county lose its "rainy-day" proceeds from the sale of the Homestead nursing home, but still new vendors are being hired. 

The latest contract to be uncovered is between Sunlight General Sussex Solar LLC, of New York City, and Joseph Jingoli & Sons, of Lawrenceville.  The contract is dated December 2, 2015, and was negotiated under the somnolent eyes of the old Freeholder Board leadership of Crabb, Vohden, and Mudrick (AKA Howard, Fine, and Howard).  It appears that the Wall Street bankers who came up with the solar scheme lack the know-how to oversee it to completion, so they've brought in an "owner's representative" in the form of Jingoli, a politically-connected contracting firm in New Jersey.

Jingoli is being paid a monthly sum of $13,990 to oversee the projects in Sparta Middle School, Sparta High School, Hardyston Middle School, Hardyston Elementary School, and Kittatinny High School.  According to the attached fee schedule, this amount provides for "a Project Manager for (1) one day per week and a Site Inspector/Superintendent (2) two days per week."  Additional fees will be charged at the rate of $1,000 per day for a Project Manager and at an $800 per day rate for an Inspector.

The contract makes clear that Jingoli has become the primary organization for providing information on the solar scheme to the taxpayers and their elected representatives.  Their duties include attending "monthly County Board meetings, prepare and present information -- as required -- at County Board meetings, prepare various reports -- including Solar Project Update Report -- for County Board, answer County Board questions, answer questions of Local Unit Facilities."

Taxpayers with questions on the projects should contact Jingoli directly so that they can be prepared with answers at the next meeting of the County Freeholder Board.  Jingoli's address is:  Joseph Jingoli & Sons, 100 Lenox Drive, Suite 100, Lawrenceville, New Jersey (08648).

http://www.jingoli.com/

Corporate Office
Joseph Jingoli & Son, Inc.
100 Lenox Drive
Suite 100
Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648

Tel: 609.896.3111

Fax: 609.219.0799
Construction Management
Civil / Mechanical
Estimating / Project Management

Fax: 609.896.1131
General Construction

Regional Offices
Atlantic City, NJ / New York, NY / Las Vegas, NV / Highland, MD / Newtown, PA

Franklin mom calls out Freeholder Mudrick

In a letter to Freeholders, Franklin resident Dawn Fantasia -- a member of Franklin's Economic Development Committee and the mother of three -- questioned Freeholder Dennis Mudrick's actions outside public meetings.

Mudrick is a lame duck Freeholder, having been defeated for re-election in the June Republican primary.  His term expires in ten days.  Fantasia is an educator and a former Republican Committeewoman who has been active with local charities and civic efforts.

The letter is re-printed below: 

December 9, 2015 

Sussex County Board of Chosen Freeholders

County Administrative Center
One Spring Street, 1st Floor
Newton, NJ 07860 

To the Members of the Freeholder Board: 

At the last meeting of the Sussex County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Freeholder Richard Vohden called for an investigation of Freeholder George Graham because Vohden believed that Graham had acted without the permission of the Freeholder Board.  It is my understanding that something similar has happened before:  Freeholder Dennis Mudrick conducted private interviews with the three candidates for the position of Sussex County Counsel before they appeared in open session before the full board.  

I would like to know how Freeholder Mudrick become aware that these three persons were the candidates?

It is also my understanding that Freeholder Mudrick offered a job and a salary to one of the unsuccessful candidates that he interviewed for the position of county counsel.  As far as I am aware, the position he discussed with this candidate does not exist.  The job Mudrick offered was "counsel to the Sheriff's Department" and the salary quoted was "$2,000 per week". 

Freeholder Mudrick subsequently announced to the Freeholder Board at the June 16, 2015 special meeting that he had met with the three candidates prior to the meeting of the full board.  Unfortunately, Freeholder Mudrick neglected to tell the other members of the Board and the taxpaying public how he came to know who the candidates were.

Freeholder Mudrick has also failed to disclose who authorized him to offer another position, with a salary figure, to one of the unsuccessful candidates. 

I request that the Freeholder Board ask Freeholder Mudrick to address these questions.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Sincerely,

Dawn Fantasia

Franklin

Vohden, Mudrick appoint former Essex Democrat to top job

On Sunday, Herald reporter Rob Jennings wrote a very interesting column about Sussex County's new top dog -- County Administrator Stephen Gruchacz. 

At last week's meeting of the county's Freeholder Board, Gruchacz -- who had been the county's Human Services Administrator -- was appointed County Administrator on a 3-2 vote (Crabb, Vohden, Mudrick voted yes; Phoebus and Graham voted no).  Along with the promotion, Gruchacz picked up a 22% salary increase worth $30,000 a year and the opportunity to boost his taxpayer-funded pension with a three-year contract. 

Not bad for someone who has never lived in Sussex County.  Crabb, Vohden, and Mudrick waived the county's residency requirement to allow Gruchacz, a resident of Somerset County, to take Sussex County's top job. 

We don't know about Crabb, but what Vohden and Mudrick should have known as they made these decisions was that Stephen Gruchacz had once been a very active Democrat Party politician in Essex County.  In fact, Gruchacz was the Democrat Municipal Chairman in Maplewood -- part of the particularly repugnant party machine in Essex County/Newark.  

When Gruchacz was a Democrat candidate for local office, the campaign he ran was too rough even for Essex County.  The Republicans actually sued Gruchasz and his Democrat running mate for making "false and defamatory statements" against the Republicans.  Gruchasz and the Democrats dismissed the charges as "political grandstanding."  The accusations were over an alleged "no bid contract."  Are you experiencing deja vu? 

Hey, politics isn't bean bag and we're sure Gruchasz got as good as he gave.  In fact, he's risen in our estimation -- but did any one of these Republicans stop and think about it before waiving the rules, giving a raise, and promoting this one-time machine Democrat to the top job in the state's most Republican County? 

This is a vote that only a R.I.N.O. would make.  That's R.I.N.O. -- as in Republican In Name Only. 

As Democrat Chairman of Maplewood, Stephen Gruchasz also held an appointed county position with Essex County, as that county's Director of the Division of Community Health Services.  Jennings notes that he was Essex County's Director the Department of Health & Rehabilitation.  Gruchasz left Essex County for Somerset County in April 2002 -- about the same time he started working for Sussex County. 

In contrast with Sussex County and its unelected County Administrator, Essex County has an elected County Executive.  In April 2002, a two-year investigation culminated in the Essex County offices being raided by the FBI.  That October, indictments were announced against the County Executive and others.  The County Executive pleaded guilty to two of twenty counts filed against him -- admitting that he had solicited an illegal $15,000 campaign contribution in exchange for a county contract.   He was sentenced to 13 months in prison. 

Gruchasz' time at Essex County had its controversies -- particularly when he tried to mastermind the sale of that county's geriatric center.  As reported in the Star-Ledger (August 17, 1995) residents and labor union leaders demanded that Gruchacz be fired.  Deja vu, all over again?

Crabb, Vohden, Mudrick appoint crony to top job

Earlier this year, Sussex County Human Services Administrator Stephen Gruchacz, aged 67, was telling people that he was all set to retire.  Many believed that Gruchacz would be the fifth top county bureaucrat to hand in his resignation in the aftermath of the county's solar debacle. 

Instead, three of the five county freeholders got around the State's Open Public Meetings Act to successfully negotiate a deal with Gruchacz to stay on -- provided he got a promotion and a 22% salary increase.  At Wednesday's meeting of the county's Freeholder Board, Gruchacz was appointed County Administrator, Sussex County's top unelected bureaucrat, on a 3-2 vote (Crabb, Vohden, Mudrick voted yes; Phoebus and Graham voted no).

Of course, the $30,000-per-year salary increase the three Freeholders gave Gruchacz came with a three-year contract.  In effect, they gave him a pension boost as well.  It's nice to have friends in high places.  Word has it that the votes of the three Freeholders for Gruchacz were delivered by outgoing County Administrator Johnny "Wildthing" Eskilson. 

On the same day that Freeholder Vohden was insisting that destroying the audio recordings of what he said during the negotiations that led to the solar debacle was nothing more than "following the law",  Vohden led a posse of Crabb and Mudrick in ignoring the County's law that requires the top job be filled by someone residing in Sussex County.  Gruchacz lives in Somerset County and pays his property taxes there.  Taxpayers screwed again.  This man doesn't even feel our pain. 

However, the Gruchacz appointment did make it plain who runs the county -- it's the outgoing County Administrator and the three Freeholders (Vohden, Crabb, and Mudrick) one of whom was just defeated for re-election (Mudrick came in four out of four).  Instead of taking the will of the voters into account, Gruchacz was appointed over the strong objections of the County's legislative delegation, other elected county officials, and numerous local elected officials.

Nobody thought it a good idea to hand Gruchacz a three year contract.  All these elected officials advised giving him no more than an interim contract as provided for by law, but Eskilson got to Crabb who infected Vohden, leaving Mudrick, who just slavishly obeys.  One can only wonder what kind of cooperation the County will get from Trenton after pulling a stunt like this.

At Wednesday's meeting, Freeholder Crabb referred to Gruchacz as "Best of Breed" -- apparently forgetting that the term is used in judging dogs.  On the other hand, this might well be a real dog of an appointment.